Quvenzhane Wallis cast as Annie

Quvenzhane Wallis has bagged the coveted role of orphan Annie in the new film adaptation of the musical.

The nine-year-old Beasts Of The Southern Wild actress - who lost out to Jennifer Lawrence for the best actress Oscar at the weekend - takes over the role from Willow Smith, who recently opted out of the movie, reports Us Weekly.

Hannah Minghella, president of production for Columbia Pictures, said in a statement: "Quvenzhane Wallis is a true star and we believe her portrayal as Annie will make her a true worldwide star."

Quvenzhane was previously rumoured to be among the frontrunners for the part after Willow - daughter of Will Smith - decided against it.

Will recently revealed Willow decided not to star in the remake because she wanted to be a normal teenager.

The Men In Black star admitted that even the thought of working with Jay-Z (who would be composing the music score) couldn't tempt the 12-year-old to take the leading role in Will Gluck's remake, which would be produced by Will and his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith.

"Willow was supposed to be doing Annie. We got Jay-Z to do the movie, got the studio to come in and Willow had such a difficult time on tour with Whip My Hair and she said, 'You know Daddy, I don't think so'," he told Hip Hop Wired.

"And I said, 'Baby, hold up!' I said, 'No, no, no, listen, you'll be in New York with all of your friends and Beyonce will be there. You will be singing and dancing,' and she looked at me and said, 'Daddy, I have a better idea, how about I just be 12'."

Comments

Post a comment

Comment

Remember you are personally responsible for what you post on this site and must abide by our site terms. Do not post anything that is false, abusive or malicious. If you wish to complain, please use the ‘report this post’ link.